July 14 Update: The Irish, Body Marking and Jungle Running

So, here we are, two weeks into July... I hope you all are well. I have been keeping very busy myself these past two weeks, but the Extra Mile has become an integral part of my routine. Not too long ago I would negotiate and justify and conjure up as many reasons as possible why I was just too busy to exercise.

Building this program is taking plenty of effort, and time is precious, so it was easily done to say "can't get to the track today, I've got too much to do". Because this run is an integral part of my job now - I have no excuses left. I have to take the time to make the time for this, and it has been a beautiful thing. I plan for time with Carin and Alex first, then the running, then everything else. I am finding that I can fit it all in, even in some of my busiest summer weeks.

Last week was a good example... I worked on staff of the Notre Dame Elite Camp the week of July 7-12. This camp is a great opportunity for me and Rick King, my right hand guy, to get up close and evaluate 175 of the top high school players in the country. It's also a great chance for me to reconnect with many friends that were part of my life during the six plus years I worked at Notre Dame. As this running campaign is concerned, though, it is a busy week. From 7am until nearly midnight, the camp keeps you going.

Three field sessions a day, meetings, meals, plus an awful lot of walking to and from these destinations, and your week fills up pretty quickly. I was able to get a run in around the lakes every day, plus a few sessions on the eliptical machine in Rolf's Fitness center on campus during the afternoon breaks, so despite the hectic pace of the camp, the Extra Mile kept going. There is no question that in the past I'd have not done anything extra during that week, but you have been a great source of inspiration to me, so thank you.

Another great source of inspiration for me came on Saturday morning, July 12. My wife Carin and I had agreed to volunteer at the Valparaiso Triathalon to help our neighbor and friend Barbie Johnson, the organizer of this great event (you'll remember that Barbie's husband Mark Johnson donated twenty miles to us earlier in the campaign). So on a rainy Saturday morning, and before 6 a.m. - which seemed painfully early on that day given the long week we had just finished, we drove out to Lakewood Park to help with the triathalon. The event turned out to be an absolute blast.

Our first assignment was body marking - we wrote numbers with a sharpie pen on the arms and legs of the contestents. It was a little embarassing seeing my wife knock over the other volunteers every time a young, fit male contestent came through to be marked, but no one was injured and the race got underway without a hitch. I then moved to help direct traffic at a pretty busy point on the course where outgoing bikers, incoming bikers, runners and fans all tried to cross a fairly tight bridge. We ended up at thte finish line as Carin handed out water bottles and I cheered for every person that crossed the line. In all, we had a great time and a great day.

Seeing these athletes - of ages ranging from 15 - 72 - handle the swim, bike and run certainly reminded me that my small campaign is barely a blip on the radar athletically.

It also compelled me to go home and run 8 miles that morning.

I should also point out that the Valparaiso Athletic department was very well represented at the Triathalon... Mike Straubel, the VU cross country coach, turned in a very good performance on the course as a competitor. Sally LaBarbera, the better half and wife of athletic director Mark LaBarbera, also burned up the course in impressive fashion. Amy Wittgenstein, the assistant coach for VU's very successful softball program could be seen in the water serving as a lifeguard for the swimming portion of the race. I am sure there were more, so I apologize if I left anyone out, but it was nice to see such a strong presence from the athletic department at this great community event.

We all have big goals and dreams for this athletic department - and I believe that the clearest way to reach your goals is help others reach their goals.

When Sunday rolled around, I was pretty tired, so this email came as a very much needed break:

Mike,

This Sunday (7/13) I will be running the 2008 Jungle Run Half Marathon in
Los Gatos. If there is anyway you can add these 13.2 miles to my pledge, I
would fee great knowing that I am running for your whole team. The air
quality has been really bad due to the ongoing fires, so I won't be setting
any speed records this time round, but as yoga has taught me - it's the
journey, not the destination that matters.

Dave

Dave is my younger brother, and works as the Administrative Director for the Center for Embedded Sensor Networking at UCLA. I have no idea what the title means nor what he does, but he always seems happy and enjoys his work and his life in Southern California, and that is enough for me. So, after a good long week in South Bend and an early day at the Triathalon, it was great to be home and spend a nice Sunday with the family.

Here is how the mileage looks so far in July:
July 1 - 7
July 2 - 7
July 3 - 7
July 4 - 8
July 5 - off
July 6 - 8
July 7 - 6
July 8 - 5
July 9 - 6
July 10 - 6
July 11 - 7
July 12 - 8
July 13 - 13.2 (donation from David Avery)

So we have 88.2 in the books this month, with 18 days left to get 111.8 (for 200 in this month). I am also behind a few miles from June, so if I can average close to 7 per day, I can get back on track.

Thanks, as always, for reading - gotta run....

Mike